Chapter 151
Euphen looked slightly surprised.
As though he truly hadn’t expected to hear such a suggestion.
“Are you planning to come with us?”
Eshar, who had been quietly listening to the conversation from behind, sighed as she stepped forward.
“It’s not a bad proposal, is it?”
At Sillian’s words, the woman’s displeasure showed clearly on her face.
It was only natural.
She couldn’t suddenly trust someone she’d been suspicious of since meeting him in the Imperial Castle.
Lynette glanced back and forth between the three of them.
“Wasn’t it because of you? No, because of the Imperial Prince, that we were put in danger in the first place?”
Back when he still served as a guard, he had never called Euphen ‘Imperial Prince’ directly to his face.
Now, however, he is openly revealing that he no longer considered him as someone he’s obligated to serve.
“Though faking his death might have removed some of the threat, if anyone were to learn that the Imperial Prince is still alive, someone would certainly try to harm Lynette again.”
“So you mean to say we should take responsibility?”
Eshar asked sharply.
“I’ll protect Lynette. You should worry about protecting yourselves.”
Sillian’s answer was firm.
Lynette pressed her lips together.
They were talking about her, yet she had nothing to say.
It wasn’t as if she possessed any special abilities to begin with.
‘Would it be better if I could do at least something?’
Even if assassins no longer came after them, this aimless journey would inevitably bring danger.
Obediently following instructions or running away when told might be the safe choice, but if she could at least defend herself to some extent, Sillian would have one less thing to worry about.
“Still, it’ll be safer with more people than just the two of you.”
“The more there are, the easier it’ll be to draw attention.”
“A traveling pair of a blonde woman and a dark-haired man would stand out quite a bit, wouldn’t it?”
Eshar bit her lip.
That’s certainly true.
If anyone had caught wind that the two of them were still alive, they’d be looking for a pair consisting of a dark-haired man and a blonde woman.
After all, as an Esper and a Guide, they couldn’t be separated.
It would be natural for them to be traveling together.
“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to make it four of us?”
Lynette felt grateful toward Sillian.
He’d initially opposed the idea as if it were completely unacceptable, but after deciding to accompany them, he was now actively suggesting they all travel together.
He could have simply backed down after a few words, yet he chose instead to yield his stance to grant her wish.
“What do you think, Euphen?”
Eshar turned the question toward Euphen.
He gave a faint, wry smile.
“Wouldn’t my answer be too obvious?”
At that, the woman bit her lip slightly, sinking into thought.
She seemed to be genuinely weighing whether traveling together would be to their advantage.
Three out of the four of them wanted to go together, but it wasn’t as if they could simply outvote Eshar.
Even on a journey meant for leisure, if one person fell out of step, it could ruin everything.
This is hardly a journey to be taken lightly.
Lynette fidgeted with her fingertips, then turned toward the gaze she felt upon her.
Her eyes met Euphen’s.
He gave her a faint, ambiguous smile.
She could clearly understand the meaning behind it.
Because she felt the same way.
They had parted with such difficulty, both steeling themselves for it…
Yet this unexpected twist had brought them together once more.
To see him again, even like this, made her happy.
But she couldn’t quite describe the bittersweet feeling that came with it.
No matter what words she tried to attach to it, none could fully express what filled her heart now.
‘You’ve lost a bit of weight, since then…’
He looked slightly thinner than the image engraved in her memory.
Realizing that, Lynette slowly brushed her hand across her own cheek.
She didn’t know if she herself had changed much, but she could guess she wasn’t looking her best either.
Hadn’t she just been crying her heart out only yesterday?
She could barely think straight.
Since then, she’d barely eaten and had come all this way in a rush,
so it was no wonder the exhaustion showed.
She had hoped Euphen was doing well without her.
Yet, seeing that he too had changed a little, she couldn’t help the faint sense of relief that rose within her.
‘It must’ve been hard for you, too. You struggled, just as I did.’
Realizing that, and even finding comfort in it, made her feel somewhat pathetic.
The two of them simply looked at each other quietly,
as though they were the only ones in this place.
In that moment, it almost felt as if nothing else mattered.
There had been a time when they didn’t worry about anything.
When they were just… happy.
As she sank into that hazy feeling, Eshar let out a rough sigh and ran her fingers through her hair.
“…Fine.”
It seemed she had reached a decision.
“Let’s go together.”
Even so, her tone still carried a hint of reluctance.
Perhaps she still couldn’t bring herself to trust Sillian.
Lynette glanced at the man beside her.
Unlike how earnestly he had argued earlier that traveling together would be better, his expression now is rather stiff.
As though he had secretly been hoping Eshar would refuse.
“But Sillian, I still can’t trust you.”
“I have no intention of asking you to.”
At the sharp exchange between the two, Lynette pressed her lips tightly shut.
Something about it felt uneasy.
She was a little worried about how things would turn out.
But more than anything, she was simply glad that she could travel with Euphen again.
While she was lost in that thought, Sillian gently took her hand.
She looked up at him.
Euphen watched the two of them quietly.
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